• 145 Spasso Italian Tapas and Wine Bar
• Luxe Residence Bldg., 4th Avenue cor. 28th Street, Fort Global City
• Taguig City, Tel. 556-0070

I live in the Fort-Taguig area, and let me tell you something I feel very strongly about: Despite all the ritzy surroundings and condos going up left and right all filled with potential restaurant goers, there's (sadly) a lot of bad food (well, mediocre at best).

So it's always refreshing to find a place that somehow gets it right. Decent food, good service, nice spacethese are the qualities that Spasso has. Their only problem: it's in a weird corner of the Fort. But more about that later.

I entered this place one night with some friends. We were just looking for a nice dinner place, and were feeling a bit adventurous. Spasso seemed to fit the bill, as I had spied on them being open one night while passing through, and noticed the "Italian tapas" sign. Small plates—“exactly the kind of food we were feeling for that night.

I have to say, in my humble opinion, that the whole tapas phenomenon worldwide is one of the best things to happen to the food world. Sometimes you just don't want a big main course. Maybe you're not that hungry, or maybe you want to drink a bit and just need something to munch with your libation. For me, it's an excuse to order and sample several things from the kitchen, and because of the concept being embraced by other cuisines, it goes beyond salchichon, tortas and croquetas. The Italians also have a word for it: stuzzichino. (See? You learn something everyday!)

We sat inside our first time, but I recommend the tables outside on a nice night, when it's a bit breezy. They have music piped outside as well—“the usual bossa nova that seems to be making the rounds here. Good thing it actually works for them (music is also something close to my heart that I think most restaurant owners here take for granted, but I shall reserve comment for another blog entry.) One of the first things you will notice is the wall of wines along a whole side of the dining area. What better to have on your table than a bottle of good vino with your food, and the wait staff know it—“I've noticed that they always give gentle nudges to order a bottle or two of wine, I'm sure upon the insistence of the management, but that ain't a bad thing, as a lot of their wines are quite reasonably priced. Cocktails are on hand as well, as they have a full service bar. Perhaps in another space with more foot traffic, this might even attract a full-on scene at night, but I actually kind of like it the way it is: we need the peace and quiet for imbibing sometimes, without the "tugs tugs" thumping on my chest, thank you.

Upon perusing their menu, it's clear that small plates are mainly what they're about, so go crazy with their selection and have a few. They're not that cheap (Heads up: the damage can hit more than 1k per head if you order apps and mains hit around P700), but the portions are fairly generous, so it's ok. I tried a stand out grilled shrimp with lardo and melon on a skewer. Lardo is an Italian creation (duh) of cured pork fat, like bacon without the meat parts. Yes, it tastes better than it soundsit's been around for many many years, so don't be afraid to put it into your maw. Orange Crocs Ambassador To The World At Large Mario Batali has been putting this on top of his pizzas foreverand lardo pizza is subsequently a best seller. Simple ingredients prepared with care and great with a drinkthe essence of tapas. This kitchen grilled their shrimp perfectly—“with grilled shrimp cooked well a bit hard to find around these parts, funnily enough. That great flavor off the grill sings with the juxtaposition of sweet melon and salty cured pork fat. (I dedicate that last sentence to my high school English teacher: I've never used "juxtaposition" in a sentence before, so I'm feeling kind of cool now )